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With quickness and aggressiveness, Reed is adept at getting into the backfield and creates matchup problems for opposing offenses.

Reed gets his defensive prowess from his father, John, who was an outside linebacker at the University of North Carolina from 1985-89. But Reed did not always imagine a route that would bring him closer to the same sport his father played.

For years, Reed was a standout baseball player. He suffered an eye injury when he was 12 while horse playing with another teammate. A stick poked him in the eye, sidelining him for nearly a year. He never returned to baseball.

“It was bad,” John Reed said of his son’s injury. “For awhile, we didn’t know if he would lose his eye.”

Reed (6-3, 216) wanted to play football in youth leagues but could not make weight. It wasn’t until high school that he started as a defensive lineman. He did well and his film from last season when he was at Clearwater got him noticed by major colleges. He committed to Florida earlier this month.

In January, Reed transferred to Clearwater Central Catholic. He joins a defense that posted a school record seven shutouts last season and averaged nearly four sacks per game.

“Justus still is raw, but he has all the attributes you’re looking for,” Marauders coach John Davis said. “He has speed, he can jump. He’s versatile and athletic enough that he can do a little bit of everything.”